Navigating Crisis in Higher Education

Congratulations to Dr. Singh and Mr. Shannon for editing this important book that chronicles how higher education survived the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 crisis challenged higher education systems and institutions, both public and private. This multi-faceted analysis helps us learn from this crisis, better preparing higher education to be resilient and survive future crises.

Dr Timothy Downs, President, Minnesota State University – Moorhead

Throughout higher education history, crisis has shown colleges and universities what they are made of, and the most recent COVID-19 crisis has left an indelible mark on higher education and its ability to manage crisis. This collection uses COVID-19 not merely as subject matter but as a rigorous lens—examining institutional preparedness, leadership under pressure, financial fragility, and the quiet way crisis decisions harden into permanent practice. Grounded in testimony from universities across sharply different socioeconomic contexts, it is at once analytically serious and compellingly human. I strongly encourage current and future leaders to engage in this reading.

Dr Arrick Jackson, Chancellor, Indiana University Northwest

The importance of being able to react and pivot quickly in today’s educational climate cannot be understated. We are in the midst of a seismic shift on how our students pursue education as scholarly consumers in an increasingly online world. Dr. Singh and Mr Shannon have done an exceptional job in identifying the many challenges our educational systems face as learning methodologies change and the use of AI transforms the landscape. However, with change comes opportunity and Navigating Crisis in Higher Education also identifies multiple examples on how Universities can adapt and capitalize in this post-pandemic learning environment. This book should be kept close by as an on-going reference for all C level leaders.

Pat Cassella, Executive Director and Past-President, United States Distance Learning Association

The University sector was sorely challenged by the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic. The hard lessons learnt in institutional preparedness, leadership and resilience are elegantly laid out in this book so that when the next pandemic inevitably occurs, the education sector is better prepared to respond from a position of strength rather than grave vulnerability.

Charles Gilks, Emeritus Professor of Global Health, The University of Queensland

This book tells an important story of how universities respond to crises, whether they be natural disasters, economic downturns, or pandemics. The contributing authors speak from direct experience to help others to learn from their collective knowledge. The project that sparked this book came from collaborations formed in the Lean Higher Education network and it is a delight to see the impact their work is having, and how, through this book, the collaborations continue to strengthen and grow.

John Hogg, Global Chair, Lean Higher Education